Creighton upsets UConn for very first win vs

Feb 20, 2024, 11:00 PM ET

OMAHA, Neb.– Creighton went into its game against UConn having lost all six of its previous conferences with No. 1-ranked teams and never ever coming closer than 10 points.The No. 15 Bluejays finally broke through on their seventh try, constructing a double-digit lead in the very first half and knocking off the Huskies 85-66 Tuesday night.” It’s a historic

game for our program,”Creighton coach Greg McDermott stated. “I told the team in the locker room, it’s really a conclusion of a great deal of work by a lot of individuals over an extended period of time to give these guys the opportunity to use this uniform and play in front of the crowd we were able to play in front of tonight.

“We played an actually excellent game and we beat an unbelievable group, a group that has a genuine possibility to win a championship game. However we’re pretty good as well.”

Creighton (20-7, 10-6 Big East) led by 23 points with 10 minutes left however saw its lead cut to 10 before holding the safeguarding national champions scoreless on 5 straight belongings, reconstructing its cushion and prompting trainees to leave their seats to prepare to storm the court– which they did as soon as the buzzer sounded.UConn Worst Defeats

When AP No. 1 Date Opponent Lost By Feb. 18, 1995 15 Villanova 23

Tuesday at 15 Creighton 19 Feb. 1, 1999 16 Syracuse 17 Nov. 26, 2003 vs Georgia Tech 16 Mar. 7, 2009 at 3 Pittsburgh 10 UConn(24-3 , 14-2 )had its 14-game win streak– the longest active streak in Department I — end three days after it beat then-No . 4 Marquette by 28 points for one of the most remarkable victories of the season– and one day after it was voted as the very first unanimous No. 1 this season in the AP survey.” It type of felt like we just encountered a buzz saw there,”UConn coach Dan Hurley said.Steven Ashworth scored 16 of his 20 points in the very first half, Trey Alexander completed with 16 points and Ryan Kalkbrenner included 15.

The Bluejays made 14 of 28 3-pointers in their second-best shooting night from beyond the arc this

season. Creighton was simply 6-of-26 on threes in its 62-48 loss at UConn last month.”When I viewed that Marquette-UConn game, I have actually got to admit I wasn’t feeling warm and fuzzy about our opportunities,”McDermott said.Conditions seemed right for the Bluejays. They came into the game off a pair of 22-point wins and on a three-game win streak, McDermott said his group’s offensive circulation has been as great as it’s been all season, and a rowdy sellout crowd was on hand.The Huskies were playing their 3rd game in 7 days, and Hurley said his players’body language wasn’t excellent in group gathers as soon as the Bluejays took the lead and developed on it.”I do think we did a bad job training tonight, our players did a bad task playing, I did a bad task training,”Hurley stated.

“Your huddles aren’t going to be super energized when you have not lost in two-plus months. … We were absolutely stunned. This wasn’t the game we anticipated, we understood this was a hazardous game and a quality challenger and among the much better groups in the nation. But we didn’t anticipate this to happen.” Editor’s Picks 2 Related It was the Huskies’19th straight roadway loss to a ranked opponent, their last such win coming at No. 19 Memphis on March 13, 2014. UConn’s Tristen Newton scored 17 of his 27 points in the second half, including 10 throughout the 18-5 spurt that helped pull the Huskies within 74-64. The Huskies made a season-low 3 3-pointers on 16 attempts in their most lopsided

loss because Houston beat them 84-45 in

the AAC tournament on March 15, 2019. They had actually entered the game off a Big East-record three straight wins by a minimum of 25 points.The Bluejays made simply 2 of their first 9 shots, routed by 8 points early and had prominent scorer Baylor Scheierman on the bench for 8 minutes in the first half after he picked up 2 fouls. Scheierman ended up with 12 points. “Even when we got off to that bad start I didn’t see any worry, no issue in our faces, we simply continued to play,”McDermott said.The Huskies had problems of their own. Donovan Clingan, their 7-foot-2,

280-pound center, was required two fast fouls and played simply 11 minutes in the half, and UConn went through a 2-for-10 spell while Creighton was finding its rhythm.A few huge shots from reserves Francisco Farabello and Jasen Green sparked an 18-2 run.

Farabello made 2 straight 3s and Green hit one from the corner to erase the Huskies ‘lead.Then Ashworth struck from over 30 feet to begin an individual run of 13 straight points for the Bluejays, who made 14 of their last 19 shots of the half and went to the locker room with a 43-29 lead.Most Losses To No. 1 Before 1st Win * Years Coach/School (s)Losses 2010-24 Greg McDermott (ISU-CREI)7 2003-07 Bo Ryan(WISC)5 * last 25

seasons”When you’re in your home fitness center, there’s a feeling of self-confidence, and the fans were a huge part of that,” Ashworth stated.” Absolutely a home-court advantage, and because first half we got on a little

little bit of a heater. “Creighton entered Tuesday boasting 3 of the top six leading scorers in the Big East– Scheierman, Alexander and Kalkbrenner– however it was Ashworth who went off against the No. 1 group in the nation, his 20 points practically doubling his season average of

10.6.	The Bluejays– who have	now beaten a top-10 team in 9 straight	years and clinched a 20-win season for the
ninth year in a row– also provided	McDermott his 600th career win
in amazing style.”

Firstly, I’m old, you’ve got to be in it a long time to coach enough games to do that, and I’ve coached at some good locations, had some truly great players play for me,”McDermott stated of reaching the milestone.”

This is one I’ll always remember due to the fact that of how it took place and how great the team was we were playing. Among the very best crowds we have actually ever had here, but as I said earlier, there’s a great deal of guys that have played for me here that have actually put us in a position to win a lot of games

, because they sacrifice.” Not everyone wishes to play the game the manner in which we play it, unselfish and selfless, however we have actually got a group here that’s quite purchased into that. “ESPN Statistics & Info and The Associated Press added to this report.